on the loose
Proposed by a contributor, not yet supported by evidence.
Sense 1
Free to move or act without restriction
Examples
AI-drafted example auto-approved by rule (illustrative, not a corpus attestation)
Sources & notes
Listed in Wiktionary’s “English idioms” category (retrieved 2026-07-29); definition pending editorial review. Definition drafted by AI (@cf/meta/llama-3.3-70b-instruct-fp8-fast) and auto-approved by rule on 2026-07-31; pending editor spot-check.
Sense 2
obtaining a living by prostitution; in reality, on the streets. The term is applied to females only, excepting in the case of "sprees," when men carousing are sometimes said to be ON THE LOOSE.
Era: ca. 1874 (Victorian)
Sources & notes
Historical definition reproduced from Hotten’s The Slang Dictionary (1874, public domain; Project Gutenberg #42108, retrieved 2026-07-31). Reflects the attitudes of its era.
Common questions
What does “on the loose” mean?
Free to move or act without restriction Literally: not physically restrained
Is “on the loose” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.